We Heart: Ellen DeGeneres For Her Rip on the Boy Scouts

As if we needed more, here’s yet another reason to love Ellen DeGeneres. Fighting bigotry with humor, Ellen decided to use her daily monologue to speak out against the Boy Scouts of America, who recently postponed a decision on whether to accept openly gay members. Scout leaders were supposed to vote last week on the current LGBT ban but put it off until May, to the ire of LGBT supporters. Said Ellen, tongue firmly in cheek,

Now, I realize this is a big decision for the Boy Scouts because if the Boy Scouts start treating gays equally, they’re going to become the first group to do it—after the Army, the Navy, the Air Force, the Marines, the Coast Guard, all of the United Kingdom and Cher. Obviously, I think that the Boy Scouts should allow gay members. I mean the fact that they don’t is insane. I mean, they won’t let their members be gay, or openly gay anyway, but they’re letting them wear neckerchiefs and green short-shorts?

She also deftly touches on how the Boy Scouts’ exclusion of gays goes against the character-building lessons the organization should be imparting to their young members:

They’re trying to teach kids to be leaders. And the more that we teach people how to accept people for who they are, the more self-confident they’ll be and the better leaders they’ll become.

We hope the Boy Scouts will eventually get on the same page as the forward-thinking Girl Scouts, a group that, in addition to causing a Thin Mint frenzy every spring, welcomes all sexual identities. They even recently accepted their first transgender member. Get with the times Boy Scouts: If President Obama and Ellen are calling you out, it’s time to do some reflection.

Comments

I love Ellen, and it’s a good thing that she is speaking out on this issue, both my boyfriend and brother are is Scouts, so I’d be so proud if they made this crucial step to become a modern club/organization.

It’s a sad by-product of the Scouting movement getting co-opted, and willingly so from the leadership because they also heavily sponsor Scouts, by religious fundamentalist groups. Where are probably well over half of all Scouting meetings and other activities held? Churches. Until they completely cut out the church’s involvement, I don’t see them changing, and there goes the budget if they do.

Here’s a novel concept: how about you leave BSA alone and you can focus on a group you are actually registered with? BSA has held the same beliefs since its inception over a hundred years ago. Why should BSA be forced to change per the whim of a select few outspoken who aren’t even affiliated with the group?
There are similar youth programs that openly accept *anyone*. Perhaps YOUR needs are better serve by spending your efforts in a supportive manner for those organizations which hold YOUR same beliefs.
It’s just as unfair for YOU to FORCE your point of view on the BSA.